Lord of Alamut
"They call him Shaykh-al-Hashishim. He is their Elder, and upon his command all of the men of the mountain come out or go in... they are believers of the word of their elder and everyone everywhere fears them, because they even kill kings." - Benjamin of Tudela Lord of Alamut, Sheikh Al-Jibal, The Old Man of the Mountain, Shaykh-al-Hashishim, Shaykh al-Islāmor or even Grand Master were all different titles given to the leaders of the Assassin Order and their Nizari Ismaili State. From Hassan-i Sabbah to Mohamed ibn Kiya Buzurg, the leader of the Assassins was not the absolute spiritual leader of his followers. It was only until Hassan II declared himself the Imam that the leader of the Nizari Ismaili State also became the unquestionable spiritual leader of the Ismailis. While Mohamed ibn Kiya Buzurg was indeed the Lord of Alamut, he said "I am not the Imam but one of his da'is". Thus proving that not all Old Men of the Mountain were Imams. Although the hidden Imams may have been the true masterminds of the Assassins, the first three Grand Masters were the public faces of the Assassins, while afterwards all the leaders of the Assassins were Imams. Ismaili Shi'a believe that these imams are chosen by God to be perfect examples for the faithful and to lead all humanity in all aspects of life. They also believe that all the imams chosen are free from committing any sin, impeccability which is called ismah. These leaders must be followed since they are appointed by God. Some Ismaili believe that the Imams are reincarnations of Imam Ali, so that the nature of the first Shi'a Imam has descended, and will to the end of the world descend, to his successors in the Imamat in their respective turns. This degree of initiation brought the revelation of the Great secret: that all humanity and all creation were one and every single thing was a part of the whole, which included the creative and destructive power. But, as an Isma'ili, the individual could make use of the power which was ready to be awakened within him, and overcome those who knew nothing of the immense potential of the rest of humanity. This power came through the aid of the mysterious power called the Lord of the Time. This "Master of the Time" has been mentioned in an Ismaili poem written by Ra'is Hassan. "The master of the time is he in whose presence the higher world bends its back every moment in supplication" Training In this, the last degree of initiation, every vestige of dogmatic religion has been practically cast aside, and the initiate is become a philosopher pure and simple, free to adopt such system or admixture as may be most to his taste. To qualify for this position, the aspirant had to believe that all religion, philosophy and the like were fraudulent. All that mattered was the individual, who could attain fulfillment only through servitude to the greatest developed power - the Imam. The last degree brought the revelation of the secret that there was no such thing as belief: all that mattered was action. And the only possessor of the reasons for carrying out any action was the chief of the cult. Hashashin Leaders Persia Trivia * The Syrian Chief Da'is may not have held the title of "Lord of Alamut" but they played a very similar role. The Syrian branch of the Hashashin was mostly independent from it's Persian counter-part, especially during the reign of Rashid Ad-Din Sinan. Category:Ranks